Your pick for the smartest boxer,please.

A bit of a stupid idea,perhaps,but friends,pugilistic pygmies and purists,lend me your ears.Some boxers,naturally enough,are clearly cleverer than others. Myself,I find myself grimacing whenever Amur Khan opens his trap.He always seems to sound like a right nana.Pretty much everything he says sounds bad to me.
The opposite end of the scale,well I make no apologies for mentioning Ali.He may well have been only averagely bright by conventional standards but his eloquence was powerful and his way with words was unparalleled.
Sadly the fighters whom I supported way back when,Calzaghe and Lewis, could fairly be described as having a dull talking style,and I always wished that they would give a good account of themselves in the press conferences,but they never did.
With Nathan(can't fight,won't fight) Cleverley a well-known brainbox, it seems that IQ per se is no guarantee of a glittering career in boxing.
What do you think about this:surely being a good learner in the gym counts for a lot,some fighters have come back and started again from scratch after a devastating loss.Being dedicated is import,but I think that intelligence is under-rated in boxing.
Personally I think that Khan's stupid choice of fights (and refusal to fight) has damaged his legacy.
It's just a bit of fun, but I'd like to hear more picks of fighters who demonstrate either extreme of intelligence.

Also have a respect for Johnny Nelson.He is a good communicator and really turned his career around ,cos he listened to Brendan Ingle his trainer.
Grudging mention of Frank Bruno who did have difficulty with language full stop

Always thought that Matthew Macklin comes across as one of the more considered and thoughtful fighters out there in intereviews or in the studio. Gets his points across clearly without resorting to hyperbole and clichés, and generally gives a pretty balanced account of what he thinks. Think Sky are missing a trick not getting him in to the studio a little more often.

In terms of in-ring intelligence, Marquez has always been a favourite of mine for that very reason. Quite a bit of his appeal for me has always been that he's got that everyman quality about him; not the quickest, a good puncher but not exceptional (Manny IV aside!), defence good but occasionally spotty, doesn't stand out in any one particular area - but that makes you appreciate his ring IQ even more. Something particularly impressive in the way he could lose early rounds and fall behind, but stay cool, gradually work his man out and eventually turn the tide completely (ala Manny I and to a lesser extent II, Katsidis, Diaz etc.)

Same reasons why I enjoy watching Mike McCallum and Alexis Arguello so much to this day. Knew how to win fights with their ring IQ if / when their pure ability (which was still awesome in both cases) wasn't enough on its own.

Nathan Cleverly
Carmensa Basilio
Genius Fullmer

Bernard Hopkins was great at neutering his opponent 'a strength,started his pro career late so had to adapt to the realities of the ring as would a boxer in the latter stages of his career.Also in a similar vein,Chris Eubanks managed to do just enough to win time after time,not as clever as he thinks he is,but ring smart were second to none.

Have to go with Bernard Hopkins in terms of "wise" - knows the sport inside out, came from the streets, served time inside i believe. Could fight an absolute stinker, could wind you up, could pick you off, could knock you out.....but has always come across as a wise old man in the sport even now.

In terms of general intelligence id go with Baby Bull Diaz - good little scrapper - from Texas i believe - had a good couple of fights with JMM but lost - think he was a lawyer??

Id also shout Chris Algeiri - comes across very well inside and out.

Thick? Bam Bam Rios. Proper.

Shout out to BJS and Fury as well.

Klitscho's were both very bright and came across extremely well in what was a third language for them (behind Ukranian and German).

Floyd seems like an idiot but his ring intelligence was second to none and he has made a huge amount of money for a less interesting / popular fighting style. It can't be all down to luck.

Good calls,Huw bach.

Gene Tunney gets the trophy for me, he was as sharp as a tack inside and outside the ropes.
Max Schmeling was also a very clever man who boxed, flew fighter planes and ran a successful business.

http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/general/boxing/floyd-mayweather-donald-trump-grab-em-access-hollywood-boxer-real-man-us-president-a7947796.html

I think this closes the book on Floyd Mayweather. Thanks for coming ,Money, close the door etc

Rich people like Trump, he makes them richer.

Outside of the ring, Ray Leonard always comes across as highly intelligent man, and has also made smart decisions (coke addiction aside) and kept his fortunes fairly well intact.
Mike Tyson is another that seems highly intelligent to me- he's very insightful, and his interviews were were often a fascinating glimpse into a troubled mind. A favorite of mine was when the interviewer, I think it may have been Merchant, asked him something along the line of if he thought that he epitomised the American ideal - that, regardless of who were and where you were from , hard work and determination could bring you success. Tyson replied that America was founded on the back of genocide, r*** and degradation, not hard work and aspiration,-cue very awkward silence. A lot of sportspeople are actually pretty dull, usually as a result of their singles mindedness, but Mike could never be accused of being that.in ring the ring honorable mentions to James Toney, and Archie Moore, high ring IQs allowing ring success long after their primes.

Cool.Agree about Tyson.Any man who had a tattoo of Arthur Ashe is fine by me.Toney could cone across as a horrible man in interviews.I remember he really ranked it up on a satellite interview with pseudo Eubank once.My he was horrible.But he wasn't really like that at all.He was great at hype.

Saul Alvarez - because he always fights with at least one judge in his pocket.

... no wonder he has stamina issues

Hmmm......keeping the Mexicans happy.....now where would be the motivation in doing that ,in Trump's America?

I'll go for Bonecrusher Smith...Only Heavyweight champion to have a College degree...Boxed part time to supplement his earnings at first....Despite being a trial horse in all but effect took his chance when it came against a disinterested Tim.

Kept his money and since he has retired devoted his life to working with troubled youngsters who have addiction problems and lobbying for more care for impoverished fighters..

What a guy....

Always had a lot of time for Bonecrusher. Never going to be number 1 but a good heavy with a half decent k.o. punch.

I think that Lennox is worthy of a shout too. Always comes across as well-educated, a good pundit and of course he loves his chess. Always great with his money and does a good amount of charity work behind the scenes.

I know he was a way down the pecking order but Nicky Piper was a member of Mensa was he not?

Yes he was/is,I'm a 'friend 'of his on social media-asked him for an interview but he hasn't replied.Two -time British champ Floyd Harvard said yes though,so I will get that finished soon,for all those Welsh fight fans here.

Calzaghe was an absolute beauty when trying to talk the talk, he always came across as a dull one, trying to act brainy.

But when he was in the ring, his intelligence was second to no one. He always worked out his opponent within two or three rounds and adjusted his own style to suit.

In boxing, perhaps kineasthetic and visual learners excel more than wordsmiths, mathematicians and traditional academics.

That was implicit in the opening premise.